Golden Eagles at Northwest: Final Four Playoff Preview

The Golden Eagles will be going to their second final four in four years under head coach Dusty Trail.

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Lily Taylor

The Golden Eagles are one game away from the State Championship contest

Adrian Holguin, Sports Editor

Breakdown:

The Golden Eagles are going to be facing the Northwest Grizzlies for the first time this season this Friday. This is a huge playoff matchup in that whoever comes out on top will have a great shot at being the 2020 5A Kansas State Champions.

Much like the Golden Eagles, the Grizzlies are anchored by an impressive and dominant offense led by their rushing attack. The top offensive weapon for the Grizzlies is senior running back Julius Bolden, who has 1,183 yards on the season to go along with his average of 10.2 yards a carry. During the team’s matchup with the Kapaun Crusaders just one week ago, Julius ran for 189 yards on his 27 total carries. It’s evident in watching this Northwest offense that Julius Bolden is the unquestioned cornerstone of not only the offense, but the entire team.

You also can’t go about discussing this Northwest team without discussing its impressive and dominant defense. Northwest has not given up more than 21 points in a single contest this season. This is, in my opinion, the best defense the Golden Eagles have seen all year.

For the Golden Eagle defense, the game plan is simple: contain Julius Bolden. If this defense is able to successfully hold Bolden to under 100 yards on the ground, BC should be able to put its offense in a good position to come out on top more often than not and hold a significant lead in the process.

The Golden Eagles will need to find consistent and creative ways of moving the ball up and down the field. This could open up the door for some trick plays to throw the opposing defense off their toes and keep them honest throughout the course of the night. We will also likely hear Hunter Trail’s name called a lot due to the team leaning on his consistent production.

Adrian’s Thoughts:

In a sharp contrast to the vast majority of the Golden Eagle games this year, I in no way expect this game to turn into a shootout. Instead, this game will likely turn into a closely contested, defensive battle. Both of the offenses in this game will lean on their star running backs. This game could easily come down to a late fourth quarter field goal or a last minute touchdown from either team. Despite the huge challenge of this year’s Northwest Grizzlies, I do expect the Golden Eagles to be able to find a way to come out on top tonight. It is in no way an understatement to say that this is the Golden Eagles’ biggest game of the season, and if the Golden Eagles are able to fight their way to victory tonight, they should without question be the odds on favorite to become the lone 2020 state champion, thus completing their ultimate goal. Final Score: BC: 28 > NW: 24